Gigai
A Gigai (meaning "Faux Body") is an artificial body that allows Soul Reapers to remain in the World of the Living and interact with Humans. Overview Gigais are artificial bodies that are used for a variety of reasons by Soul Reapers within the World of the Living. It is currently unknown when exactly the first Gigai was formed and by whom. However, it is known that Gigais existed at least 101 years ago as Kisuke Urahara was known to be experimenting with different variations of Gigai for several sets of reasons. One reason that a Soul Reaper might use a Gigai is in the event that they lose their powers as only with their powers can they return to Soul Society. However, while remaining the world of the living, they are targets for Hollows and so choose to reside within a Gigai and begin to behave like Humans in order to blend in and avoid being hunted. Another reason is if it is required for their mission to interact with Humans or to reside among them in order to search for threats and to blend in while doing so. While being created, Gigai can be designed with specific attributes that make their jobs easier depending on their purpose. During this stage, they have the generic appearance of a muscled Human with no unique characteristics or features. When the Gigai is hosted by a Soul Reaper, it assumes its hosts appearance and they can now be seen by normal Humans the Soul Reaper happen to be around while they reside in the Gigai. The Gigai does not take on the clothes its Shinigami host is wearing and thus, they must acquire modern clothes in order to blend in with the Humans. Souls can leave Gigai’s by a variety of methods but the fastest appears to be by using a Gikongan in order to replace the soul within, allowing it to freely leave the Gigai; in the case of a Soul Reapers, this is done so that they may fight at their full strength while ordering the replacement soul to keep the Gigai out of harm’s way. It seems that leaving the Gigai without this method can be troublesome for the Soul Reapers. Variations Standard: These Gigais seem to be used for a single purpose of harbouring the soul of a Soul Reaper while it carries out prolonged missions within the World of the Living. They are also used to harbour a Soul Reaper who has lost its powers and are awaiting them to return so that they can return to the Soul Society. Unfinished Prototype: Before his exile, Kisuke Urahara was shown to be experimenting and attempting to create a special Gigai. At the time, souls within the Rukon District were simply evaporating under mysterious circumstances and Urahara aimed to create a Gigai that would help souls remain in human form instead of disappearing. The incidents were a result of experiments being done by Sōsuke Aizen and his colleagues. Before Kisuke Urahara could make use of this Gigai in the way he intended, he was exiled and was forced to use this technology to help more victims of these experiments. Spiritual Pressure Concealing Gigai: This Gigai was developed 101 years ago by Kisuke Urahara so that he, Tessai and the Visored could escape from Soul Society and live, undetected, within the Human World. During this time, Urahara aimed to find a way in order to reverse their Hollowfication as a result of Aizen's experiment, which saw them condemned to death. Inflatable Gigai: Urahara developed this Gigai to use as a decoy in battle. It is seen being used against Yammy Llargo during the third Arrancar invasion of Karakura Town. It also appears to be effective enough to fool even Aizen when the two faced off during the Battle of Fake Karakura Town. Rukia’s First Gigai: This Gigai appears to be unique in that instead of allowing the soul to recover, it actually gradually lowers the host’s Spiritual Pressure until they become a normal Human with no spiritual powers whatsoever. It was also untraceable to keep the wearer’s Reiatsu hidden from other souls that may be looking for the host. This Gigai was given to Rukia by Urahara in order to permanently seal the Hōgyoku within it, thus keeping its immense power, out of Aizen’s grasp. Category:Items